DOD Expanding Contractor Cybersecurity Program

Inside DHS' Classified Cyber-Coordination Headquarters

A Department of Defense (DOD) program that shares cyber-threat information with defense contractors and their network providers has already stopped "hundreds of intrusions" in its 90-day pilot phase, the deputy secretary of defense said this week.

The DOD soon plans to expand its Defense Industrial Base (DIB) experimental program--which currently has 20 participants--to the remainder of the industry base, as well as "key areas of critical infrastructure," deputy secretary of defense William J. Lynn told attendees Tuesday at the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Customer and Industry Forum in Baltimore.

A transcript of his talk is available online.

The DOD launched the program, in which the agencies also work with defense contractors to use the threat information in a practical way to stabilize their networks, in June.

"By furnishing this threat intelligence, we are able to help strengthen these companies' existing cyber defenses," Lynn said Tuesday, adding that the pilot "also appears to be cost effective."

In his speech, he reminded people that the program is voluntary, and stressed that it does not violate anyone's privacy because the feds are not "not monitoring, intercepting, or storing any private sector communications."

Lynn also elaborated a bit on the specific work being done in DIB to prevent intrusions. He said that those participating are loading malicious code signatures that have been gathered by previous intelligence efforts onto existing systems to increase their cybersecurity effectiveness.

"In this way, the DIB Cyber Pilot builds off existing capabilities that are widely deployed through the commercial sector," he said.

Lynn did not name the current participants in the program, and a DOD spokeswoman declined to name them at the time when the program was revealed. However, a published report in the Washington Post released at that time identified AT&T, Verizon, and CenturyLink as participating Internet service providers, and Lockheed Martin, CSC, SAIC, and Northrop Grumman as participating contractors.

DIB is a collaborative effort between the DOD and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), but the National Security Agency is providing technical advice and cybersecurity information upon request by the DOD.

The Obama administration has been proactive in its efforts to work with the private sector on a host of technology fronts, and cybersecurity is a key area of collaboration. The DHS, for instance, already is sharing cybersecurity intelligence with some private-sector CIOs through another program launched last year.

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